CES 2014: Toyota Wants Its Fuel Cells to Also Power Your Home in a Pinch

Toyota's CES press event yesterday was mainly dedicated to discussing the state of the carmaker's hydrogen fuel-cell program and the current state of hydrogen refueling infrastructure. But one particular aside tossed off by Toyota's senior vice president, Robert Carter, stood out. According to Carter, Toyota is also working on an external device that would allow a hydrogen fuel-cell car to charge a house for up to a week in case of an emergency.

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The idea is not far-fetched. Between its fuel-cell program and the Prius, Toyota has invested heavily in battery R&D. According to Carter, Toyota's current fuel stacks, which combine oxygen and hydrogen to create water and electricity, can store up to 100 Kw of power. Considering that's the same amount of power in some commercial generators, powering your average house sounds feasible. In fact, it sounds kind of brilliant.

Of course, turning your car into a funky blue generator isn't Toyota's priority at the moment. The carmaker has made some big strides since it first started testing fuel-cell vehicles in 2002. In that time, it's seen the total cost for the fuel-cell stacks and tanks reduced by 95 percent, Carter said. The company has also been racking up tens of thousands of miles across the U.S. with three new test mules that will likely be the base for the company's 2015 fuel-cell sedan. These mules can do 0-60 mph in roughly 10 seconds, have an output of 134 horsepower, and are consistently seeing 300 miles of range when fully fueled.

Impressive as all of this is, there remains the same old looming challenge: hydrogen infrastructure. With only 10 hydrogen refueling stations currently in California, owning a fuel cell vehicle isn't convenient. There are plans to expand this number within California by up to 100 by 2024 and other initiatives to create a wider network across the entire U.S. But hydrogen fueling stations can cost up to $1 million, and getting enough stakeholders to invest in the alternative fuel remains a challenge. According to Carter, though, not as many stations might be needed as people think. Pointing to studies and models, Carter and Toyota believe that one factor will matter more than than the total number of hydrogen refueling stations: location, location, location.